According to the policeman at the roadblock I spoke to it was a high speed loss of control. 40mph+ is feasible there and there's a big tree on the first left bend after the descent. Don't know any more than that but if you get cyclists regularly descending at full tilt accidents will happen.

According to the policeman at the roadblock I spoke to it was a high speed loss of control. 40mph+ is feasible there and there's a big tree on the first left bend after the descent. Don't know any more than that but if you get cyclists regularly descending at full tilt accidents will happen.

There are some updated details on the accident this morning. It appears he was actually descending at low speed, within the 20mph limit in Richmond Park, and the bike slid out from under him. He was also wearing a helmet.

It is a sobering story. I ride in Richmond Park quite regularly, and I tend to take that hill using a very particular line where I shed a little speed before the apex for a healthy safety margin. I'd rather focus on my time going up the hills than down them.

I'm not sure there's anything to learn from this except that every activity carries risk, which we balance against the benefits (which for cycling are considerable).